A triathlon is an endurance multisport race consisting of swimming, cycling, and running over various distances.[1] Triathletes compete for fastest overall completion time, racing each segment sequentially with the time transitioning between the disciplines included.[1][2][3] The word is of Greek origin, from τρεῖς or treis (three) and ἆθλος or athlos (competition).[4]
The sport originated in the late 1970s[5] in Southern California as sports clubs and individuals developed the sport. This history has meant that variations of the sport were created and still exist. It also led to other three-stage races using the name triathlon despite not being continuous or not consisting of swim, bike, and run elements.[6]
Triathletes train to achieve endurance, strength and speed. The sport requires focused persistent and periodised training for each of the three disciplines, as well as combination workouts and general strength conditioning.[7]
The evolution of triathlon as a distinct sport is difficult to trace with precision. Many, including triathlon historian and author Scott Tinley, consider events in early twentieth century France to be the beginnings of triathlon, with many three element multisport events of differing composition appearing, all called by different names.[8][9] The earliest record for an event was from 1901 in Joinville-le-Pont, Val-de-Marne: it called itself "Les Trois Sports" (The Three Sports).[10] It was advertised as an event for "the sportsmen of the time" and consisted of a run, a bicycle and a canoe segment.[11] By 19 June 1921, the event in Joinville-le-Pont had become more like a standard triathlon, with the canoe segment being replaced with a swim. According to the newspaper L'Auto, the race consisted of a 3 km (1.9 mi) run, a 12 km (7.5 mi) bike ride and the crossing of the river Marne, all staged consecutively and without a break.[11][12][13] Throughout the 1920s other bike, run, and swim events appeared in different cities, such as the "Course des Trois Sports" in Marseille[14][15] and "La Course des Débrouillards" in Poissy.[11][13] These multisport events would continue to slowly spread and grow in popularity: by 1934 "Les Trois Sports" was being hosted in the city of La Rochelle, though it consisted of three distinct events, swimming a 200 m (660 ft) channel crossing, a 10 km (6 mi) bike competition around the harbour of La Rochelle and the parc Laleu, and a 1.2 km (0.75 mi) run in the stadium André-Barbeau.[16] Throughout this growth with new events appearing no unified rules ever existed and as a whole triathlon would remain a minority event on the world stage.[citation needed]